Today The Duran's Alexander Mercouris starts the discussion by enumerating the steps of the ladder. I'm taking notes.
Neocons/EU push to prolong conflict to achieve Putin regime change goal - YouTube
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Friday, April 8
Could Amnesty International be charged with a war crime if shown to be lying?
Of course not, which is why they can act with impunity. Even if caught red-handed lying, Amnesty could claim they made mistakes, that they were simply passing along accusations about Russian troops.
In any case, the accusations reported by Amnesty are nonsensical if you know anything about the Russian war strategy in Ukraine.
Russian military has committed war crimes in Ukraine, Amnesty International report claims (aol.com) - Yahoo! News April 5
As for this nonsense in the Yahoo! report:
On Thursday, [Germany's] Der Spiegel magazine reported that Germany’s foreign intelligence service had intercepted radio conversations between Russian soldiers talking about killing civilians in Bucha. In at least two separate conversations, Russian troops spoke of interrogating Ukrainian soldiers and civilians before shooting them, according to the Washington Post.
Now how do we know for certain the BND can't intercept radio conversations between Russian soldiers in Ukraine? I'll let the Washington Post editor chew on the question.
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More on the Bucha fabrications and role of Maxar Technologies
MSM's Bucha Tall Tale, by Nick Griffin - The Unz Review - April 5.
My questions: Did Maxar knowingly participate in the deception? Did The New York Times?
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Thursday, April 7
Forensics challenges date of Bucha satellite imagery quoted by New York Times
Start at 12:09 minute mark.
Interview w/Scott Ritter, April 6, 2022, By Don DeBar - YouTube
As to who Don DeBar is -- I never heard of the man before. It's what Scott has to say that's important.
Scott gets off a zinger toward the end, after he's finished talking about Bucha. "Ukraine's a captured state. That's the reality." Captured by Nazis with American and European help. And Zelensky had the effrontery to evoke Winston Churchill in a speech. (For readers who know nothing about World War Two, Churchill was anti-Nazi.)
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Wednesday, April 6
Counting groups of victims in Bucha incident
MoA - Ukraine Open Thread 2022-42 (moonofalabama.org)
Posted by: Petri Krohn | Apr 6 2022 18:49 utc | 67:
I made a list of the Bucha massacre victims on our research wiki. There are at least seven different groups of victims; each needs to be investigated separately. The numbers for each group are approximate.
Scott Ritter permanently banned from Twitter today
Inevitable. I'm surprised he lasted as long as he did.
Twitter bans US Marine for questioning Ukraine narrative — RT World News - April 6
Twitter “permanently suspended” the retired US Marine Corps officer Scott Ritter on Wednesday, accusing him of engaging in prohibited behavior by questioning the claims of Ukrainian authorities that Russian soldiers had massacred civilians in Bucha near Kiev. Ritter is best known as the former UN weapons inspector who doubted US claims about Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, invoked by Washington as a pretext for the 2003 invasion.
“So apparently I’ve been suspended from Twitter for the crime of challenging the orthodox narrative of the so-called Bucha massacre,” Ritter said on his Telegram channel, sharing a screenshot of the message he received from the Big Tech platform.
“I’ve appealed, so who knows what the future will bring,” Ritter said, adding that “Freedom of speech in America today is an endangered concept.”
According to the screenshot, Twitter’s censors had decided that Ritter violated their rules against “harassment and abuse” by saying the Ukrainian police had committed crimes against humanity in Bucha, and were trying to shift blame onto Russia with US help.
Ritter’s tweet did not contain calls for abuse or harassment, or wish physical harm on anyone, Shadowproof journalist Kevin Gosztola pointed out, arguing that his ban “shows how Twitter Rules can be twisted to silence US foreign policy critics.”
The rules were recently updated to include “denying mass casualty events took place,” Gosztola noted, but he said Ritter hadn’t done that, either.
In an op-ed published by RT on Monday, Ritter had examined the Ukrainian allegations that the withdrawing Russian troops had massacred civilians on their way out of Bucha, pointing out a number of inconsistencies and “red flags” with them and putting them in the context of the propaganda war raging parallel to the ongoing military conflict.
[The truth about Bucha is out there, but perhaps too inconvenient to be discovered — RT Russia & Former Soviet Union - Scott Ritter, April 4]
Grayzone’s Aaron Mate also pointed out that there was nothing that fit the definition of “targeted harassment” in Ritter’s flagged tweet, and asked Twitter to “please undo” the ban.
“You’re suspending a decorated Marine Corps veteran and former chief UN weapons inspector who bravely warned the world about the Bush [administration’s] Iraq WMD lies. Silencing voices of dissent will make your platform un-usable,” Mate tweeted.
Ritter is a retired US Marine who had inspected Soviet weapons under the now-defunct INF treaty, worked as the chief UN weapons inspector in Iraq from 1991 to 1998, and served on the staff of General Norman Schwarzkopf during the first Gulf War.
His “suspension” comes just days after Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk took a seat on Twitter’s board of directors, having become the platform’s largest single individual shareholder on hints that he would dial back its censorship.
[END REPORT]
Selling Ukraine's Nazis to Americans. White Helmets redux
Right-wing Azov Battalion emerges as a controversial defender of Ukraine (greenwichtime.com) - April 6. This is actually a Washington Post report:
Right wing militias backing the Ukraine military - The Washington Post (paywall)
The free Greenwich Time posting of the WaPo article is linked at the Drudge Report, where it's sure to get many American readers. Western propagandists are working hard to persuade Americans that Russian warnings about Ukraine's Nazis are greatly exaggerated. We've seen the same sales pitch given to Americans about extremist jihadis fighting Syria's government.
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Germany temporarily steals Russian Gazprom unit
The guys at The Duran are pretty amazed and confounded by this latest turn of events, and Alexander is concerned that it presages the end of Germany as an industrial giant.
Germany and UK seize Gazprom assets. Biden blocks Russian bond payments - YouTube
I can't find a news item specifically about the U.K., only that the U.K. has been thinking about "nationalizing" a retail Gazprom outlet but is now relieved that with the German move they won't have to, or something like that. It's confusing.
The story gets quite complicated given that Russia seems to have preempted the German move by selling the Gazprom unit, and then Germany returned fire by claiming that the sale wasn't authorized, so they were seizing control of the unit, so there.
Here is Bloomberg's explanation of the situation, although it's inaccurate to call what Germany did "nationalization." They simply grabbed the unit -- temporarily, they say, until the sale can be sorted out or whatever.
Germany to Nationalize Gazprom Unit to Safeguard Gas Supply (bloombergquint.com) April 4
(Alexander explains the difference between nationalization and expropriation.)
As to the UK., a British move could be imminent. Again, it's confusing. See this April 4 report:
As to the bond business, more Shoot Yourself in the Foot policy from the Biden administration. Speaking of which, Intel Slav posted a funny video of Biden being left out as people gather around Obama on his visit to the White House.
Although the Duran didn't get around to discussing this, my first thought was if Germany falls, wouldn't this signal the end of the European Union? And maybe the euro?
Well, maybe the Germans will work things out with the Russians, at least in terms of energy supply, but it looks as if the country's Green party is happy with the thought of a deindustrialized Germany. And once you're deindustrialized, what do you need all that gas for, anyhow? The Germans can put up more windmills and raise more sheep so they can knit a lot of sweaters to wear in the winter months.
[flipping a pen in the air]
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Tuesday, April 5
Bucha-gate
I don't want to talk about this but felt I had to say something, so this cryptic warning is my way of splitting the difference.
There is an 'open-source' claim by someone purportedly in the know that tells me the same characters responsible for Syria-gate were busy in Bucha. So, if you know in detail about allegations that Assad's forces carried out chemical attacks against Syrian civilians, you should be able to figure out Bucha-gate.
These characters are very bad men -- and I believe they'd consider that a compliment. What is to be done about them?
Do you remember my account of what I was told in India many years ago when I tangled with a veritable fiend?
"Do not trouble yourself about that man, madam. All one can ever do with evil is give it a good thrashing and send it on its way."
That did eventually happen to the fiend, who made the Bucha instigators look saintly in comparison.
Okay, but just how to give the instigators who are pulling strings in Ukraine a good thrashing? The Russians dealt with these characters in Syria. Let's see what the Russians can come up with.
Meanwhile there is prayer, and perseverance.
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Monday, April 4
"The First Casualty of War is Truth"
The Duran live now with Scott Ritter. Just starting.
The first casualty of War is Truth (Live w/Scott Ritter) - YouTube
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Sunday, April 3
Are Democrats fitting President Biden for a pair of cement shoes?
Strange days here in Washington. Well, stranger than usual. Rumors have been flying that the DNC bosses are looking to remove Biden from the presidency, although how they would do this is unclear. I don't think even Obama could simply snap his fingers. One speculation is that they'll try to blackmail him into resigning unless he wants to see his son Hunter in jail.
Even so, they'd be left with Kamala Harris, whose chance for bringing in a Democratic Party victory in the next presidential election are considered to be very small by those In the Know, if she didn't first fumble the U.S. into a nuclear war when she replaced Biden.
However, it's still just a rumor even though it has enough fuel for me to mention it here.
As to the latest about Hunter's infamous laptop,
Laptop from hell entered into the official Congressional Record - YouTube - The Duran, April 3
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RU forces destroy key Odessa oil depot
The Ru
Telegram: Contact @intelslava - April 3
The Russian army destroyed the oil depot in Odessa, which supplied the southern grouping of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
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"How many people are going to survive this?" Oh, shut up, Alastair
I'm so sick of the hand-wringing about Europe's self-inflicted plight. Besides, Alastair is wrong; the politicians who made the decisions will not experience a huge amount pain. Only the populations they uh, serve will suffer, and who cares about them?
NATO’s economic attack on Russia has split world powers into “two separate spheres,” Crooke explained on RT’s ‘Going Underground’ on Saturday. He argued that by completely decoupling the price of commodities from the US dollar, sanctions on Russia have essentially dynamited the credibility of the fiat currency system, and Brussels has made the wrong move by rushing forward to bludgeon Russia with sanctions without lining up a backup source of fuel.
“In many ways, Europe has not sanctioned Russia, it has sanctioned itself,” Crooke said, pointing out that the conflict in Ukraine is essentially being paid for by $100 billion in EU funds previously sent to Moscow to pay for fuel, and the Western Europeans “cannot get gas from anywhere else that will substitute for Russian gas.”
But I'll let him chatter on because he's reasonably brief and to the point:
EU has ‘sanctioned itself’ – UK ex-diplomat — RT World News - April 3
By sanctioning Russia without a plan for replacement fuel, the European Union may have hurt itself more than Moscow in its drive to punish Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, former British diplomat Alastair Crooke told RT.NATO’s economic attack on Russia has split world powers into “two separate spheres,” Crooke explained on RT’s ‘Going Underground’ on Saturday. He argued that by completely decoupling the price of commodities from the US dollar, sanctions on Russia have essentially dynamited the credibility of the fiat currency system, and Brussels has made the wrong move by rushing forward to bludgeon Russia with sanctions without lining up a backup source of fuel.
“In many ways, Europe has not sanctioned Russia, it has sanctioned itself,” Crooke said, pointing out that the conflict in Ukraine is essentially being paid for by $100 billion in EU funds previously sent to Moscow to pay for fuel, and the Western Europeans “cannot get gas from anywhere else that will substitute for Russian gas.”
By cutting itself off without lining up a backup, the continent has signed its own death warrant, as citizens will have a difficult time surviving under double-digit inflation without critical (now-sanctioned) commodities like fertilizer and certain types of food, he continued.
I don’t see any sign that Europeans gave any thought to the strategic consequences of what they were doing,” Crooke observed, suggesting the “fervor” to take down Russia had eclipsed its common sense. The EU gets 40% of its gas from Russia, while the US’ offer of liquefied natural gas will only cover 4% of its needs and Qatar cannot supply the remainder.
“They go into these things without any thinking and they suddenly say ‘we’re going to divest ourselves from any reliance on Russian oil or gas within the year’ - How?” Crooke asked incredulously, marveling at how the continent could not have predicted that Russia would demand payment for its gas in rubles. “People are going to feel a huge amount of pain … gas and electricity have gone up 50%, they’ll probably go up another 100% before the end of this year. How are people going to survive with this?
I don’t see any sign that Europeans gave any thought to the strategic consequences of what they were doing,” Crooke observed, suggesting the “fervor” to take down Russia had eclipsed its common sense. The EU gets 40% of its gas from Russia, while the US’ offer of liquefied natural gas will only cover 4% of its needs and Qatar cannot supply the remainder.
“They go into these things without any thinking and they suddenly say ‘we’re going to divest ourselves from any reliance on Russian oil or gas within the year’ - How?” Crooke asked incredulously, marveling at how the continent could not have predicted that Russia would demand payment for its gas in rubles. “People are going to feel a huge amount of pain … gas and electricity have gone up 50%, they’ll probably go up another 100% before the end of this year. How are people going to survive with this?
[END]
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"One of the dead appears to move his arm"
From The MoA Week In Review - OT 2022-40 (moonofalabama.org) - April 3
Propaganda:
- Gonzalo Lira proves without doubt that four different Ukrainian propaganda clips with different actors were all filmed at the exact same location, a 'battlefield' with several long destroyed Ukrainian tanks --> Propaganda BTFO (video)
- Yesterday evening a Ukrainian station showed a video of Ukrainian troops driving through Bucha, north of Kiev, with several 'dead' people lying in the street allegedly 'killed by Russians'. There are two difficulties with these claims:
- One of the dead appears to move his arm: video
- Bucha was declared 'completely liberated' of Russian troops by its mayor on Thursday, March 31. [March 30 by the Russian count] Are we to believe it would take three days for such an 'incriminating' video to come out? Or that those 'dead' were lying there for three days with no one bothering.
I take offense; to uphold freedom we must believe anything from Ukraine's government, so Gonzalo can go sit on a tack.
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LGBTQ faction urges spoiling democratic election to protect democracy in Hungary
Hungary rights groups urge invalid votes to defeat Orban's LGBTQ referendum - March 31
BUDAPEST, March 28 (Reuters) - Hungarian human rights groups are urging voters to spoil their ballots to defeat a government referendum on LGBTQ issues taking place alongside a national election on Sunday, saying its approval would strengthen prejudice against the LGBTQ community.
[...]Urging invalid votes is an example of Sandbox politics, whereby I dump sand on you before you can do it to me.
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Can NATO bomb Hungary for not teaching LGBTQ values to schoolchildren?
At one time that would have been considered impossible because Hungary is a member of NATO but since the Hungarians have refused to join other NATO countries in the metaverse, anything is possible now.
While the Biden White House considers options, today Viktor Orban's political party has once again stolen the national election from the opposition parties. It would be news to the majority of Hungarians that Orban's landslide victory was stolen but clearly, those people don't get their news from the right sources.
I note America's CNN and Russia's Sputnik have given strikingly different versions of Orban's description of the opponents.
SPUTNIK:
"Dear friends, this victory will also remain unforgettable for the rest of our lives," Orbán said, "because there were a lot of those that we needed to fight against: the ‘left’ at home, the ‘international left’ abroad, the Brussels bureaucrats, all the financial institutions of the Soros empire, the international media, and actually even the Ukrainian president."
While the Biden White House considers options, today Viktor Orban's political party has once again stolen the national election from the opposition parties. It would be news to the majority of Hungarians that Orban's landslide victory was stolen but clearly, those people don't get their news from the right sources.
I note America's CNN and Russia's Sputnik have given strikingly different versions of Orban's description of the opponents.
CNN:
"We will remember this victory until the end of our lives because we had to fight against a huge amount of opponents," Orban said, citing a number of his political enemies including the Hungarian left, "bureaucrats" in Brussels, the international media, "and the Ukrainian president too -- we never had so many opponents at the same time."SPUTNIK:
"Dear friends, this victory will also remain unforgettable for the rest of our lives," Orbán said, "because there were a lot of those that we needed to fight against: the ‘left’ at home, the ‘international left’ abroad, the Brussels bureaucrats, all the financial institutions of the Soros empire, the international media, and actually even the Ukrainian president."
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Friday, April 1
"Gas for rubles and a 'fair world order' "
The Duran today.
Gas for rubles and a 'Fair World Order' (Live) - YouTube -- Starts with military sitrep. And yes, just who is the Ukr gov. trying to evacuate from Mariupol??
BTW: "A recent poll found that Putin’s approval rating has risen to 83% since the invasion started, up from 71% in February. The ruble is also recovering from the initial hit that it took when the US started imposing sanctions, and the Russian currency is back up to its pre-invasion value." -- Quote from:
US Targets Russia's Technology Sector in Latest Sanctions - News From Antiwar.com - March 31
Yikes!
🇷🇺❗Medvedev: “We will supply food and crops only to our friends (fortunately we have a lot of them, and they are not at all in Europe and not in North America). We will sell both for rubles and for their national currency in agreed proportions.”
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Americans coordinating bioweapons research in Ukraine. Sputnik identifies them.
I wonder how long the Russians have been investigating those characters.
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Ukrainian claims include "410 victims" and "Russians executed all men between the ages of 16 and 60". No bodies or other proof has been presented for these numbers.